9 Month Zouk Dance Recap
I came to Brazil with the goal of getting as good at zouk as I possibly can with about 6 hours of privates experience before. Prior, I was in Mexico City and trained 8 intense months with the sole of focus of getting really good at Salsa and Bachata (training/dancing 4-12 hours a day [average 6 hrs]) and when my main bachata instructor showed me zouk, I realized this is where I wanted to devote my attention.
I left Mexico City with almost no knowledge of what was in Brazil besides the names of a few zouk teachers, and a general idea of what type of zouking is more popular in Rio vs. Sao Paulo. (I recommend Sao Paulo for pure zouk, Vila Madalena/Pinheiros for safety and food/coffee).
Being a complete beginner at any social dance, sucks. It's hard in Salsa, it's hard in bachata, but there is no level of deeper suck than Zouk. Zouk music doesn't normally have a clear "end" like a bachata or salsa party, so when someone ends the dance it's usually abrupt [and for me after 1 song]. Every mistake you make is obvious, and because the bpm is slow you have to wait an eternity until you can start your basic again.
It took me 4 months of zouk privates every day and socials 4 times a week for zouk to feel good. It took me 7 months for me to feel comfortable leading mediocre head movement. 9 months in I am finally rounding out all 9 basic steps: frent e tras, lateral, viradinha, gostosinho, piao, bonus, io-io, giro simple, soltinho - some might even say side basic without torsion.
Initially I was more interested in learning moves like the Toalha, but now I'm learning that it isn't the flashiest moves that make the best leads. It's the quality of movement: clarity, comfort, connection, and creativity. For example: the quality of hand presence, the connection to the floor, the posture, the flow. Elements that I believe make zouk a unique dance.
What I find most interesting is all these basics are connected and you can flow and combine all of them seamlessly. Zouk has structure, it has rules and lines, and once you understand the structure you can also create variations (inversions, reverses) of the moves while also adding head movement on the same side or in opposition. Zouk truly feels to be an infinite play of different movement combinations, with different feelings and types of connection, and when combined with music, makes completely immersive shared human experience.
If you are a martial artists, musician, with a passion for music (hip hop, house), with a high social pain tolerance, drive to improve, might I suggest getting into Zouk? The balance, athleticism, timing, attention to detail and discipline from the martial arts will help with zouk. The understanding of tempo, tone, and feeling from being a musician will help with zouk. But neither martial arts or creating music has the same feeling of connection and creativity, that I have found in Zouk and I think it's worth exploring. Or if you're looking for an active hobby/community and you just love music, consider taking a beginner local zouk class.
